How to stop your door jamming

Here's a satisfying DIY job - unsticking a "dropped" door that no longer closes because its bottom edge jams against the floor.

Carefully mark how much wood you must take off the door to make it clear the floor when closing.

Unscrew the door's hinges from the frame (bottom hinge first if you don't want the door to topple over embarrassingly - and damagingly).

Plane off the bottom of the door to your mark - if there's a lot of wood to remove, saw first to just outside your pencil line, then plane. Finally rub the bottom of the door with sandpaper, then rehang it in the same position with new or fatter screws if the old ones weren't holding well (it helps if someone holds the door for you).

Once the door is back in place, note where it shuts relative to the strikeplate (the bit that should accommodate the door's latch). Very likely the latch now sits too low, in which case unscrew the strikeplate. Most are recessed into the doorframe, so now you'll need to (carefully) extend this recess downwards with a sharp chisel.

Screw the strikeplate back in at the correct height. Not only does your door now shut, it should stay shut, too!

Top tip

If your legs are long enough, stand astride the door and clamp it between your knees while you plane the bottom edge. This ensures that the plane cuts into the corner (without splitting the open grain), and frees up your partner to put the kettle on ...